Cardiovascular disease is one of the leading causes of death in the world. In Spain alone, 28,800 deaths a year are due to this type of pathology, according to 2021 data from the National Institute of Statistics. Its connection to an unhealthy lifestyle is evident, experts say, especially with unhealthy eating patterns that prioritize products high in fat, salt, and sugar.
It is for this reason that studies are increasingly prioritizing finding which eating pattern is the most successful in reducing the risk of heart disease. Recently, an investigation published in The British Medical Journal (BMJ) has examined the different works focused on this topic to answer which is the best diet to prevent this risk.
They selected forty controlled trials with more than 35,000 participants based on dietary interventions aimed at reducing mortality and cardiovascular accidents. These included low-fat, Mediterranean, very-low-fat, modified-fat, low-fat-low-sodium combination, Pritikin, and Ornish programs.
These seven diets were compared with minimal intervention programmes, that is, without nutritional advice or offering brief and infrequent advice. The experts noted that, among the dietary patterns analyzed, the Mediterranean diet was the one that offered the best results in multiple parameters compared to the low-intervention programs.
The risk of death from any cause decreased by 30%, and in participants with a medium predisposition to suffer these pathologies it was reduced by more than half. It also lowered the risk of cardiovascular accident and myocardial infarction. In subjects at high risk of death for any reason it was further reduced.
But the Mediterranean diet was not the only one that achieved good results. In patients who followed a low-fat pattern, the risk of mortality was reduced by 16%, and non-fatal heart attacks decreased by 20%. In both diets, the most significant risk reduction was experienced by patients with a high predisposition to suffer these pathologies. The changes occurred without the subjects exercising more, and the remaining five diets did not show better results.
The researchers conclude that "there is moderate certainty that programs promoting Mediterranean and low-fat diets, with or without physical activity or other interventions, reduce all-cause mortality and non-fatal myocardial infarction in patients at increased risk cardiovascular". In addition, they point out that the Mediterranean diet could decrease the risk of stroke.
Other recommendations that are given to prevent cardiovascular pathologies are to stop smoking and reduce the consumption of alcoholic beverages, practice daily sports or control stress, hypertension and diabetes.
